


Castaway

by citrineelephant



Category: Borderlands (Video Games), Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Survival, Wilderness Survival, inspired by Minecraft
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-05
Updated: 2020-07-05
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:08:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25086676
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/citrineelephant/pseuds/citrineelephant
Summary: Crash landing on a mysterious planet, Zane is all alone as he tries to find out what happened and regroup with the people of Sanctuary.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 7





	1. Crash Landing

Warmth.

It was warm, the light beating down on the man. His white lashes fluttered open like the wings of a butterfly. The first thing his eyes caught was the blue sky and the white clouds dancing amongst the expanse. It was like a painting done in the old days without all the use of technology. It was stunning.

A soft and gentle breeze swayed the tall grass all around him. He even noticed a few birds flying overhead.

Ugh, birds.

And the smell of… smoke…? It filled his nostrils.

Wait a minute…

The man quickly sat up, soon regretting it.

“Feck..” Zane groaned as everything flooded down on him at once, the pain radiating from his throbbing head and aching back.

A palm touched the back of his white locks, coming back with a stain of red on it. 

“Shite. What the feck happened?” the man spoke aloud, looking around and catching the source.

The drop pod was not far behind him. Fire billowed out of it and the door hung open. He must have gotten flung from it in the crash.

“Lucky to be alive, I guess,” Zane muttered under his breath, taking to his feet. 

The man looked around, seeing nothing but a flat field of grass as far as the eye could see. It was like a vast sea with no land in sight.

“Great,” he scoffed, brushing off his pants.

Zane turned towards the drop pod. The fire had engulfed it. Anything inside would have already been burned already. Not that he would risk entering the death trap, anyway.

The man pulled out his ECHO device, but quickly noticed it had not survived the crash. The screen was busted, smashed nearly in half. He figured he must have landed on it when he was ejected from the drop pod.

“Great!” Zane hissed, tossing the broken thing aside, “What now?”

He had no idea what to do. It looked like he was stranded in the middle of nowhere and now he was out of communication with the ship.

The ship!

That was right, the ship was going down before he blacked out. 

Sanctuary…

Where did it go down, though? It had to have crash landed on the same planet, right? It could not have been very far.

Did everyone survive, he wondered? Did his team survive? 

They had to have survived...

Zane had to find the ship. That was the goal. 

But where would he start?

The castaway glanced around again, hoping to find some sign that he may have missed. That was when his eyes caught it. Something in the distance. He was unsure of the direction, other than the fire from the drop pod was pointing that way. 

“Feck it,” Zane shrugged, moving for it. 

///

The walk took a lot longer than he had thought it would. Pushing aside grass and weeds, he kept the object in sight, desperate to not lose it. But as he got closer and closer to the thing, he felt nothing but disappointment.

It was just a tree. Zane noticed the leaves way before he exited the field of grass, but immediately recoiled when his foot sank into the mud. 

Marshlands.

“Ugh!” the man struggled to pull his boot out of the mud, but eventually got it loose and stepped back onto more secure land, “Gross…”

Zane made sure to watch his step as he tried to get out of the grass. He did not need to wander long, quickly noticing an incline in the distance, hovering slightly above the waist high grass.

He made his decision to follow the incline instead, wading through the grass and disturbing various creatures as they fled out of his way. 

///

The incline was farther than the tree had been, but he walked for it anyway. Maybe there would be something past it, or maybe he could get a little bit of a vantage point on top of it. 

Maybe.

Eventually, Zane got to it and climbed. It was not much of a climb, but it was a bit muddy. He quickly got up it, however and noticed something behind it.

There were houses. Like a little village, sitting in a flat plains. 

“Yes!” Zane cheered, immediately breaking out to a run, “Yes, yes, yes!”

The man ran for it. It did not matter than he was unarmed, aside from his gadgets, having lost his weapons inside of the drop pod, he figured he could handle whatever happened if it turned out the locals were not too friendly. 

And then his foot snagged something.

Zane tumbled forward, eyes wide in fear as he fell down the hole he had not been watching for. 

Immediately, he landed with a hard thud, the sound of a crack echoing on the stone walls surrounding him. The breath was stolen from his lungs as he broke out into hyperventilating, hands grasping at his chest.

Feck, feck, feck!

Zane’s brain was on fire as a full blown panic overwhelmed him.

Can’t breathe… Can’t breathe… Can’t feckin’ breathe!

The operative tried to collect himself, to steady his breathing, and eventually, he got a hold on it. Slowly, his breathing returned to normal, but his heart was still racing.

“Ow, ow, ow!” Zane gasped in, letting it out quick as he sat up, feeling the sharp pain in his left side.

That was not good. 

His hands grazed the spot and he knew he had broken his ribs. 

“F-Feck!” the man hissed, falling back to the ground. 

This was not a good start. 

Zane stared up at the sky above. That beautiful blue sky, with the brush strokes of wite cloud. The hole was almost perfectly circular, extending farther down than he would have liked.

There was no time to waste, he thought. 

Quickly, he forced himself back up, struggling to his feet as he choked back a few screams. 

He had had worse before, this was nothing.

Zane stood in the pit, noticing there was still quite a bit of height above him. He reached his hands up and still, but his hands could not reach the top.

Shite.

The castaway had to think. Dying in some hole on some planet he was not even sure of the name was not an option. What a pathetic way to go, falling into a pit.

Zane scoffed at his thoughts, an idea sparking in his mind.

The pit was just narrow enough to pull something a bit smart. 

With haste, he moved, placing his hands on either side of the pit’s walls.

Perfect!

Zane knew the pain was going to come the moment he jumped up to shimmy up the wall, but he had to push through it. 

One, two, three…

The man jumped into the air, making an attempt to catch himself, but he failed, falling back down to the floor of the pit.

“Goddamn it!” Zane huffed, pushing himself back up to try again.

He could not stop. He had to get out of the hole and get to the village.

The operative placed his hands on either side of the cave again, preparing to jump.

One, two…

The man jumped up, catching himself this time, but with a cry of pain. 

“Feck!” Zane cried out, forcing his body to stay.

This was nothing, he told himself. 

Keep going.

The man moved his hands up, preparing himself to jump again.

Another cry. 

Again, he moved himself up.

And again.

And again.

All while the agony lit up in his ribs, begging him to stop, but he pushed through. 

Again.

Again.

Again.

And he was at the top. 

Finally, he was there. 

Zane pounced on the wall of the pit, dragging his body over the edge and onto the surface once more. He just laid there and breathed, staring up at the sky again.  
Finally.

Zane sat up, wincing at the pain in his side, but forcing himself to his feet. He could not lay there forever. He had to get to the village.

The man glanced over to the houses and started making his way to them.

///

“Hello?” Zane called, walking through the quiet village.

Nothing. 

Not a soul to be found.

“Hello?” the operative called again, walking up to the closet house and looking through the windows on the door.

Empty.

The man walked away from the house and towards the center of town. Still, no one to be seen.

“Well, my luck just keeps getting better and better, doesn’t it?” Zane muttered to himself, walking up towards another house.

Inside, through the window on the door, he noticed a chest.

The castaway thought for a moment, before trying the door. 

It opened and the man stepped inside.

The man walked over towards the chest, taking a seat on the bed. He opened it up.

Inside was a backpack, an axe, and…

A book.

“What’s this?” Zane asked himself, flipping it open.

Books were not common in the six galaxies anymore. It was odd seeing one in person.

But the man quickly noticed it was not a story book, but a diary of sorts.

No, an instruction manual.

A guide.

Zane scanned the first page, and then the next, and then the next.

It was a guide on how to survive out in the wilderness. 

How to survive on… Partum? 

Zane tossed it aside, assuming it to be a fairytale, but he grabbed the bag and slung it over his shoulders, heading out of the tiny house.


	2. Blue and Red

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zane needs to find the people of Sanctuary, but it is proving hard to find any leads.

Zane entered another house, heading for the chest in the corner. He crouched down next to it and popped the lid open, raising a brow at what was inside. 

Inside the chest was food, a lot of it. Mostly bread and apples, but there was also a metal chestplate. Armour. 

...And two fist sized light blue crystals. He picked one up and it was heavy as all hell. The man was surprised by the weight. Twisting his wrist around to look at the milky blue rock, he wondered what it could be.

What would such a gemstone be doing sitting around an empty village?

What did that mean for the missing residents?

Zane pulled the bag off of his back and tossed the crystal inside, noticing that it triggered a holographic menu to appear. 

“Huh,” the man breathed as he saw an icon appear for the object. 

Hovering his finger over the icon displayed a name for the object.

It was a diamond.

Now the man was concerned. 

Where did everyone go?

Zane shook his head. He had a mission and that was to find his friends from Sanctuary. That was his main priority. 

The man tossed the other diamond inside the bag and then the food. Each type of item got their own inventory space, but items also stacked if they were similar to each other. 

Convenient. This technology was sweet.

The operative turned his attention to the chestplate. He was not sure if he would need it, considering the shield he had. 

But then he turned his attention to the shield. Just like his ECHO device, it too, was busted.

Shite. Of course.

Zane sighed and inspected the armour. Maybe it would protect against primitive weaponry, but bullets? He was not sure. It was the only thing he had now, however, so he reluctantly slipped it on over his head and adjusted the straps on the sides and shoulders, pulling them tight. 

At least it looked kind of cool.

///

The planet’s sun was beginning to drift towards the horizon. Light was falling fast as the operative finished raiding the abandoned village. And he was growing tired. 

His mission would have to wait for the next day. Zane needed rest. 

The man ducked back into the last house he checked, deciding that was where he could sleep. It had a bed in the far corner of it’s one room. He took the bag off of his back and sat aside the axe he had picked up earlier, approaching the bed.

The yellow of the sheets appealed to him, considering his theme colors of sorts. Soon, he pulled the sheets back and slipped underneath them, finding the bed cozier than some he had been on, but still not the best thing ever. It felt good to rest. 

And soon, his eyes drifted shut and he was off to sleep.

///

There was a bang at the door and Zane shot up from the bed instantly. It was too dark to see, but he had clearly heard something bang on the wooden door to the house.

Zane felt his heart racing, grabbing for the axe he had nearby. Soon, his fingers grazed the handle and he pulled it into his hands, peering through the cloud of black.

Another bang.

“Hello?” the man asked in the dark, pulling the sheets aside and stumbling from the bed.

A groan. A deep, guttural groan. 

And then another bang.

“I’m sorry, the village looked like it was abandoned-” Zane was cut off by a loader groan and a harder bang on the door. 

The door swung open.

“Woah!” the man stumbled backwards, nearly falling back on the bed, “I can leave!” 

Then the footsteps. Awkward, shuffling footsteps. 

And another groan. Long and drawn out.

“Oh, you’re a… You’re one of those zombies, aren’t ya?” Zane pulled his arm back, ready to swing into the dark. 

The response was just another groan as the footsteps drew closer and closer.

Zane swung, the blade of the axe colliding with something and making a sick squishing noise. 

There was no scream, just a groan.

“Zombies,” Zane stated in disbelief, “Of course!”

He pulled the axe back with a struggle and the noise was just atrocious. It was so… Juicy. Not something he was not used to, however. Zane swung again and this time, the blade swung clean through… something.

The groans stopped as two thuds hit the floor. 

As the man’s breathing calmed and he realized he was not in immediate danger anymore, he wondered how long that would last.

It could be a long night.

///

Zane had stayed up all night, staring blind into the darkness until the light returned to the land. All night long, he heard noises outside. Hisses and groans and what sounded like his late oldest brother’s favourite human bone wind chime. Odd, he thought. 

What was out there?

The man would have loved to fight more of the undead and whatever else had been lurking around the village that night, but fighting blind was not something he enjoyed. It was far too dark to have even seen his own nose. 

But, Zane survived the night. Now, he had to get back out there and find the people of Sanctuary. That was what mattered the most. 

The operative took to his feet, making his way towards one of the windows and stepping over the rotted corpse of the zombie he had killed in the night. 

Outside, he could see nothing of interest but the plains. There was no sign of life once again. Not a soul.

The man turned his attention back to the corpse on the floor. He bent down next to it, noticing how he had managed to decapitate the once living human. 

Murder did not faze the man. He was a retired hitman, afterall. It was just another game, but this time, without the money. 

“Zombies…” Zane breathed, taking back to his feet.

The castaway gathered his bag and his axe and headed for the broken down door.

It was time to head out.

///

Zane noticed the trees on the horizon and a large structure further behind it, towering over the forest. 

The man had been walking for hours, the sun beating down on his back the whole time. He was exhausted, growing hungry and thirsty as he moved forward, searching for any clues of the downed ship. All he had in his bag were apples and bread. He picked the bread.

Zane decided to rest right where he was standing, sitting down on the grass and pulling his bag off his back. The display screen popped up as he opened the bag and he quickly selected the bread.

The operative bit into the large piece of bread. It was not stale whatsoever. It had the texture of fresh bread, soft and airy. It was absolute heaven, actually.

The man had not realized how hungry he truly was. Soon, he found he was scarfing down the loaf without much care. He had more, three loaves more. What did it matter hogging this one down?

And then, the man moved to another piece, selecting the loaf from his inventory.

Oh god, this was great. He never loved bread so much in his goddamn life.

But, after he nearly swallowed the second loaf whole, he realized he had to stop himself. That would keep him full for a bit, but he knew he had to pace it, just in case.

Considering he had been walking most of the time on this planet, maybe saving food in case of emergencies was a good idea.

///

Zane was back on his feet, moving towards the forest. As he got closer, he realized the looming structure behind the trees was a large hill of sorts. 

It was time to climb, he thought. 

Quickly, he made his way past the trees, entering the forest. It was a pine forest, something he had not seen in quite some time. Actually, he had not really seen much of this scenery in awhile. The man had spent so much time on desert planets as of recent, he almost forgot what a temperate climate was like.

The trees towered over the man. They were not that close together, so a lot of sunlight made it’s way through the forest. Zane noticed there were flowers growing in the more open spots.

Red flowers. 

They were pretty, red as could be, swaying in the gentle breeze as small bugs fluttered about. A smile crossed the man’s face as he watched, temporarily getting lost in the beauty of nature.

But then, the ground was no longer under his feet.

“Feckin’-” Zane hissed as he fell forward.

Another hole. This time, he was lucky. The man caught his fall as he tumbled into the shallow pit. If it was not for his suit, he would have scrapped up his elbows and knees like a small child. 

“God, I’m-” the operative huffed, disappointed in himself for falling in yet another hole, “Bloody holes!” 

Zane picked himself back up, pulling himself from the tiny pit and back onto the grass. 

Of course his clumsy ass would fall in another pit.

God, he was so mad at himself for doing that.

“Watch where you’re goin’, boyo,” he muttered to himself, continuing his walk and making sure to watch where he was going this time.


	3. The Rapids

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zane finds a vantage point, but the dark proves to be tricky.

The top of the hill. God, it was huge.

It was not quite a mountain, but it sure was large.

And it was not just one hill, but a series of them.

Zane stood at the top just as the sun was starting to set on the horizon. He had spent the rest of that day climbing. His muscles ached and he was dead tired.

“Great,” the man muttered to himself as he placed his hands on his hips, looking out at the expanse of land in all directions. 

The man noticed the river flowing through the hills. 

“Perfect!” Zane shouted, deciding that he should follow it in… what direction?

But as it got dark, his vision was beginning to fail. He was not going to be doing anything in the pitch black of night. 

Shelter was what the operative needed, but there was nowhere in sight to hunker down for the night.

Shite, he should have stayed at the village, he thought.

But he had to keep moving forward. 

Zane decided he should get down the hill before he lost his sight completely. As he took a step forward, he lost his footing.

Oh no.

The castaway quickly started to tumble, rolling headfirst down the incline. 

He bounced, thrown down the hill roughly, banging into the ground with such force. It was not long before he felt the grasp of weightlessness.

And then the splash into the water below.

Zane plunged below the water, feeling the strong current pushing at his body. He struggled to the surface, barely able to see anything but the darkness looming over his vision. 

The sound of the rushing water.

It pushed him forward, pulling him back under the rapids. The operative flailed his arms wildly towards anything he could grab, but he could not find anything in the sea of panic. 

He could not see.

He could not breathe. 

He could only struggle helplessly against the force of the water.

His head burst above the water and quickly the man gasped for air before he was pulled back under. The man’s body twirled under the surface. He was not even sure how deep he had been pulled under as he tried to hold his breath.

Another breach towards the surface, but it was far too short to grab a single breath. Zane nearly inhaled water as he was tugged back under.

Helplessness.

If there was anything the operative could not stand, it was being helpless. That lack of control was something he despised.

Zane surfaced again, this time inhaling the cold water before being sucked below once again. 

Shite, shite, shite!

The man was panicking. 

This is where he dies. 

He was going to drown. 

The operative felt his lungs inhale desperately, only sucking in more water. That was when his body slammed into something. 

Zane was stopped by a large object lingering in the rapids. His arms grabbed for it, pulling himself up towards the surface.

He coughed and choked, spitting the water from his lungs as he held on for his life.

The operative tried to pull himself out of the water, but the force of the current pushed hard on his lower half, trapping him on what felt like a log.

Then a noise. The object started to shift.

“Don’t you feckin’ dare!” Zane coughed, trying to pull himself up once again.

He was partially dragged back down as he tried to move. 

Feck, feck, feck.

There was the sound of a crack. It was a log afterall. And it was shifting more, the current pulling on it.

“Please don’t break, please don’t break,” the operative muttered to the only thing keeping him from being sucked back in the rapids.

An idea popped into the man’s head.

A hand reached for his waist. With the desperate grip, Zane grabbed the remote digistructor and pulled it above the water. With haste, he pointed the lazer towards what he assumed was the shore and slammed his finger on the button. Luck finally smiled down on the man as a blue light began to appear, forming into his digiclone, hovering in the black.

Another crack and Zane hit the button again, quickly teleporting to his clone’s position.

His eyes caught the sight of the blue light of the clone disappearing quick as the final crack echoed through the land. As the light disappeared, he felt the remote vibrate, signalling that his clone had perished below the water.

“Feckin’...” the operative breathed out, collapsing to the ground.

He fell on his back, looking up at the night sky, seeing the light of the stars. There was no moon to reflect the planet’s star’s light, placing the night in pitch blackness. But he could still see the light of the stars. And they were beautiful. 

Almost taunting him…

Sanctuary.

He had to find the ship. 

And then there was a groan in the distance...


	4. Aches

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zane is exhausted and aching, but he has to keep moving.

Zane had spent the night running. Well, limping as fast as could. As far as breaking any bones besides his ribs, he was not sure if he had. 

After being hurt as bad as he was, he was not up for fighting blind again. He realized rather quickly he had lost his axe in the fall, anyway.

But he still had his energy claw.

When the man heard the hoard of groans and moans approaching him, he whipped out the claw. The limited light illuminated the faces of the dead as he swiped at them, trying to push through them. The man quickly realized he needed to get away.

Zane was exhausted. His entire body hurt. He knew he must have been bruised something awful from the fall, but now was not the time to check. However, his walking slowed as the morning began to lay on the lands, rays of light peeking through the trees.

It was then that he realized he was lost.

The operative had no idea where he had come from or where he was going. He was lost in the wilderness, hurt and desperate. 

Sanctuary was the goal, but he had no leads. No notes, no signs, nothing.

Zane thought he might die from his own stupidity before he found his friends.

The man kept walking, moving slower and slower before his legs just gave out under him. He fell into the grass, letting out a loud groan.

“This… sucks…” the castaway sighed, allowing himself to rest finally.

It seemed like the dead were long gone. It also seemed like they were considerably slow, thankfully. Zane was grateful that he was not dead… yet. 

But his luck was seemingly not in his favor. 

Zane raised his head, placing his arm under his chin. That was when he noticed something through the trees.

More houses! 

The man wondered if there would be anyone there. He forced his aching body to his feet, quickly stumbling towards the buildings.

Just like the other tiny town, it was eerily quiet as well.

“Hello?” Zane called, “Hello? Is anyone-... Oh, feck it.”

The man entered the first house. It was about the same size as the other village, but the design was different. The use of pine logs and stone was liberal. A homely little village, all without the people.

“Of course…” the operative muttered, rummaging through the place.

And as his luck would have it, the place was bare. Every house he went into, there was nothing to loot. No food, no weapons, no medicine, nothing.

Zane sighed, getting slightly ansty. 

Where the feck was everyone?

The castaway limped from the last house and stood in the center of town. There stood a well, filled to the brim with water. The man thrusted his body towards it.

The taste of water felt so good on his tongue. All that running had dried his throat out and he had not even realized it. 

Much better than sucking it down his lungs. 

After the man was finished drinking from the well, he glanced around. He needed to bring water with him if he was going to be lost in the wild. 

Zane turned back to the houses, searching for anything to hold water in. He ransacked the village looking for anything and soon, he found it. 

Jars. 

There were three jars under a cabinet in one of the houses and he swiped them quickly. He immediately headed back to the well and scooped up as much water as he could carry. 

The jars were placed carefully into the bag, taking up another slot of inventory. 

The man then stood up, thinking about what to do. He could either rest in the village or keep going. 

Zane decided to rest.

///

The operative was not sure how long he was asleep, but he felt well rested after waking up. His eyes fluttered open to the sun shining in his face from the window next to the bed. It must have been midday and he was sure he had been sleeping way longer than just a couple of hours. 

Shite, how long was he out for?

It did not matter. It was the rest he needed. Desperately. However long he was out for, it was good for him. 

Zane sat up, pulling the purple sheets from off of his body. A soft whine escaped his lips as he stretched, wincing at the pain in his side, back, and, hell, everywhere. 

He ached. He had been through a lot since his crash landing. Nevermind that it was mostly on account of him being clumsy and clueless. 

The operative was mad at himself for that. He, with the help of three other friends, had taken down so many Vault monsters, two Sirens, a madman with a mech suit, a couple who used the power of a Vault monster for immortality, a cowgirl with too many enhancements to count and various other baddies throughout his retirement. 

But he was nearly taken out by a river. 

Zane sighed, pulling himself from the bed. 

He had to get moving.

///

The sun was making it’s way across the sky, getting close to the end of the day once again. Zane was still stuck in the pine forest, wandering in one direction.

He hoped.

The operative just kept moving, but eventually he had to stop. 

The man came to a rest in a small clearing, falling to the ground. He immediately pulled the bag off of his back and swiped through the inventory, pulling out a jar of water and a loaf of bread. Thankfully, the bread was still good.

Zane stuffed the bread in his mouth, ripping away a chunk with his teeth and quickly swallowing it. He then took the jar and twisted the lid off, aggressively putting it up to his lips and downing as much as he could in one swig.

The man had not realized how hungry and thirsty he was as he stuffed his face with bread and washed it down with water.

“Oh, feck,” the operative muttered as he pulled the jar of water away from his mouth. He had drank about half of it before he stopped himself.

The man wanted to continue to finish the jar, but he knew he had to pace himself.

Later, he told himself. 

Later.

Zane struggled to his feet, throwing the jar back in the back and swinging the bag back on his back.

It was time to head out.

///

Zane paused before he accidentally got himself killed.

Another cliff. 

The operative stood at the edge, backing up slighter. Before him was a sea of trees, extending out as far as the eye could see. 

“I’m going to fling myself from this GODDAMN CLIFF!” Zane hissed, kicking at the ground. 

He had no idea where he was or where he was going, but he knew he was lost. His hopes of finding the ship were dwindling. 

The operative turned to head back down the incline, carefully this time, but noticed as the sun was starting to fall farther and farther from the sky, a village towards his left in a clearing of trees. It looked like the beginning of another plains biome.

Maybe this time…

Zane figured he might as well head for it. At the very least, he could hope for supplies.

///

The last of the light draped over the land and the operative had made it towards the edge of the forest. 

That was when his eyes caught movement near the houses. 

Figures.

People!

Zane could not help the excitement he felt. Finally, people! 

“Please be normal living people and please do not be zombies!” the operative begged aloud to whatever may have been listened. 

The man limped for the village, watching as the figures moved about, but he quickly stopped when he noticed it.

The stench of rot. 

Human rot.

“Oh no,” Zane muttered under his breath.

It was overwhelming. So much, the man started to gag. 

“Jesus!” the man coughed, covering his nose and mouth with his hands. 

He had been around this before on Pandora, but it was still disgusting and vile to see and smell. 

One of the dead caught sight of him and immediately started making it’s way over to him. Luckily, they were slow. 

Zane decided to move towards the open plains, moving away from the village. Whatever it had, it was growing dark and he did not want to fight for it. Maybe he would come back, if he could find it. Maybe he would just keep searching for Sanctuary. 

The man continued forward.


	5. Sunflowers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zane collapses from exhaustion, surprised at where he wakes up.

Another night of walking and running from unseen monsters lurking in the darkness. He had no luck in finding shelter that night and his body hated him for it. As the light finally breached the sky, Zane collapsed from exhaustion. 

///

The sound of a cow mooing startled the man awake. The beast had been staring him down as his eyes opened back up to the world, making him jump.

“Stupid feckin’...” Zane grunted, “Cows!”

The operative had not seen a cow in years. Decades even. They had originated from the human homeworld and were not seen too much in the borderlands. 

But here was one, staring down at the man, in the flesh. 

Zane sat up, feeling all of his bones crack at once. He was really sore now. 

That was also when he noticed the sunflowers. He was absolutely surrounded in a field of them, all pointing towards the sun.

The cow wandered off and soon, the operative got to his feet, looking over the ocean of yellow.

Everything around him was sunflowers.

Sunflowers for as far as the eye could see.

Then, the man noticed the insects and bugs flying around. They were huge. 

A bee the size of his head came buzzing over, gently and curiously. 

“Woah, you’re a biggun!” Zane laughed as the bee flew close to his face, looking at him with it’s big brown eyes.

The bee flew back and forth, seeming like it was trying to figure out who or what this man was. Then, it turned around and flew off, disappearing into the sea of yellow.

Butterflies fluttered about, butterflies of all shapes, sizes and colors. 

Zane’s favourite was the blue one he spotted with yellow markings on the wings. He watched it as it fluttered around him, dancing about the spot the man was standing, and then flying off, disappearing like the bee had done.  
A smile crossed the operative’s face as he waded through the flowers, picking a direction to get back on his mission.

As much as the man wanted to stay, he knew he had to keep moving.

Just keep moving.


	6. Run, Bunny, Run

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Exploration can be dangerous.

Zane broke through the field of sunflowers, leaving it behind as he marched forward, determined to find Sanctuary.

The operative could see more buildings in the distance and he did not have much hope of finding anyone alive inside. After them was something else. Something tall, what looked to be a tower of sorts. 

He was heading for the buildings, not before he was stopped by the large stretch of ground missing a few yards ahead of him. 

A fissure in the ground. Earthquakes, the man assumed. He walked up to it, careful not to slip or get to close, and peered down. The closer he got, the more hot he noticed it was growing.

The damned thing was enormous. It must have stretched twenty feet by maybe three hundred feet, dipping down farther than he could survive the drop. 

Zane inched a little closer, seeing what was at the bottom. 

Lava. Red hot lava, spewing and churning below. It stretched across the entire bottom of the crack, threatening to sear anything that dared fall inside.

“Woah, shite!” the castaway backed up, “Haven’t seen that before!” 

That was when a storm suddenly brewed without warning, the skies darkening so fast Zane had no time to think. The water poured down hard and the sounds coming from the fissure scared the man half to death.

He ran, fully expecting the crack to erupt like a volcano. He decided through his panic that he needed to get to the village, so after calming himself down after noticing there was not exploding molten rock raining down around him, he navigated his way around the fissure and towards the village.

///

Before long, Zane was at the village. And like the others, this one was abandoned as well. There was not much supplies but a few more loaves of bread and some carrots. He sighed, looking towards the tower.

Maybe the tower would have something. It looked like it was built for defense. An outpost of sorts. It was not exactly close to the village, but it seemed possible that the people that once lived there used the outpost. 

The operative did not stay at the village long, instead choosing to investigate the tower. As he made his way towards it, he noticed the silence. 

Dead silence.

It was far too quiet. 

Zane unleashed his claw. With the light of day, he could fight. He sensed it in the air. Hostiles were about. Somewhere.

The man came up to the tower, soon noticing the cages on either side of it, standing empty with their doors open. He could smell the fresh blood. 

Suddenly an arrow zipped by his head and quickly he ducked with nowhere to hide.

Another arrow. It bounced off his armour and landed on the ground. 

Zane was off as the arrows flew, darting back towards the village before he got killed.

He never liked to back down from a fight, but it was way more likely he could get an arrow to the eye before he managed to take everyone down. He could come back when he had guns.

As Zane’s feet pounded against the ground, he heard the sound of the arrows whizzing past him.

Run. 

Just run.

The adrenaline was pumping through his veins, driving his body forward, but as he approached the village, he saw faces. 

Hostile faces, pointing crossbows right at him.

“Shite!” Zane hissed, nearly tripping on his own feet as he forced his body to a stop, changing direction. 

And he ran.

And ran.

And ran.  
///

So there were people. Just so far, not friendly. 

Zane had since slowed his pace, catching his breath. He was closely approaching another forest. This one was taller and the trees were thicker. It looked like an older forest, but it was absolutely dense. 

He noticed the larger than life mushrooms.

Neat!

The operative approached the edge of the forest, peering deep into it. Without hesitation, he walked in.

///

Mistakes had been made. Zane was back to running, this time, dodging trees, branches, vines, roots, rocks, whatever. He just had to run.

Night was approaching fast as the man sprinted forward through the brush. The arrows were flying as he was chased through the woodlands. 

Keep running.

Keep running!

Zane hissed through his teeth, grunting as one arrow grazed his leg, ripping the skin open. 

But he had to keep running.

Keep. Running.

///

Zane could not keep going. His legs gave out on him again and he dragged himself under a mushroom cap, hoping to hide from the enemies chasing him.

He held his breath, tending to the wound from earlier. Soon, feet ran by and kept on going. 

The man released his breath, leaning back on the stem of the giant mushroom.

A big mistake.

The force of Zane falling back on the stem caused the mushroom to explode, releasing a blanket of spores, choking the man.

Zane coughed and wheezed. He could not see. He could not breathe. He clawed at his throat and tried to rub his eyes before he realized he needed to get out from under the mushroom cap.

Blindly, he moved, feeling forward for the edge of the fungus, quickly finding it and ducking his head under. He dragged his body underneath and pulled himself out from under it, inhaling the fresh air with a desperation in his lungs.

Coughing and choking, he began to rub his eyes again, blinking rapidly to remove the gunk from them.

Soon enough, he could see and breathe well enough to start to beat himself up over yet another stupid mistake. 

“Ugh,” Zane groaned, falling back to the dirt. 

Luck really was not in his favor.


End file.
